Change on Request:Understanding SC 3.2.5

Intent of this Success Criterion

The intent of this Success Criterion is to encourage design of Web content that gives users full control of changes of context.
This Success Criterion aims to eliminate potential confusion that may be caused by unexpected changes of context such as automatic launching of new windows, automatic submission of forms after selecting an item from a list, etcetera.
Such unexpected changes of context may cause difficulties for people with motor impairments, people with low vision, people who are blind, and people with certain cognitive limitations.

Some types of change of context are not disruptive to some users, or actively benefit some users. For example, single-switch users rely on context changes that are animated by the system, and the preferences of low-vision users may vary depending on how much of the content they can see at once and how much of the session structure they can retain in working memory. Some types of content, such as slide shows, require the ability to change context in order to provide the intended user experience. Content that initiates changes of context automatically only when user preferences allow can conform to this Success Criterion.

Note: Clicking on a link is an example of an action that is "initiated only by user request."

Specific Benefits of Success Criterion 3.2.5:

Individuals who are unable to detect changes of context or may not realize that the context has changed are less likely to become disoriented while navigating a site. For example:

individuals who are blind or have low vision may have difficulty knowing when a visual context change has occurred, such as a new window popping up. In this case, warning users of context changes in advance minimizes confusion when the user discovers that the back button no longer behaves as expected.

Some individuals with low vision, with reading and intellectual disabilities, and who have difficulty interpreting visual cues may benefit from additional cues in order to detect changes of context.

People with certain cognitive limitations do not get confused if automatic redirects are performed by the Web server instead of the browser.

Examples of Success Criterion 3.2.5

an "update now" button

Instead of automatically updating the content, the author provides an "Update now" button that requests a refresh of the content.

An automatic redirection

A user is automatically redirected from an old page to a new page in such a way that he or she never realizes the redirect has occurred.

Each numbered item in this section represents a technique or combination of techniques that the WCAG Working Group deems sufficient for meeting this Success Criterion. The techniques listed only satisfy the Success Criterion if all of the WCAG 2.0 conformance requirements have been met.

Sufficient Techniques

Instructions: Select the situation below that matches your content. Each situation includes techniques or combinations of techniques that are known and documented to be sufficient for that situation.

Situation D: If using an onchange event on a select element:

Additional Techniques (Advisory) for 3.2.5

Although not required for conformance, the following additional techniques should be considered in order to make content more accessible. Not all techniques can be used or would be effective in all situations.

Opening new windows by providing normal hyperlinks without the target attribute (future link), because many user agents allow users to open links in another window or tab.

Opening new windows only when best from an accessibility perspective (future link)

Common Failures for SC 3.2.5

The following are common mistakes that are considered failures of Success Criterion 3.2.5 by the WCAG Working Group.

Note: A change of content is not always a change of context. Changes in content, such as an expanding outline, dynamic menu, or a tab control do not necessarily change the context, unless they also change one of the above (e.g. focus).

Example: Opening a new window, moving focus to a different component, going to a new page (including anything that would look to a user as if they had moved to a new page) or significantly re-arranging the content of a page are examples of changes of context.